Simultaneously, the URL of the Times' Tumblr—at some point in the morning, it had been wiped clean of its five or so test posts and updated with a single entry that read "Coming soon!"—was starting to make the rounds on Twitter.

Soon enough, it became apparent that The Huffington Post had also just started a Tumblr. And so had The Atlantic. And so had Rolling Stone. (Though the latter two had no content as of the time of this posting, and we haven't confirmed with either publication that the blogs are official, though we assume they are.)

But the idea that a publication would create an external blog in addition to the blogs that live on its own website is just starting to take hold. And Tumblr, known for its sophisticated user interaction features, has become the media's preferred platform.

As it turns out, by a Tumblr spokesperson's count, there are around 20 traditional media outlets (and that includes HuffPo because, whatever, it's a huge operation that bills itself as a newspaper on the web) that are now Tumbling, much like so many of the (mostly) young "media elites" who either work for, read or obsess over said news outlets. (Disclosure: I have one.)

"It seems like all of these guys have been eager to experiment with emerging platforms," said Karp, in an email. "The most exciting part is seeing publishers like BlackBook and Newsweek finding unique ways to use Tumblr that are hugely complementary to their normal publishing routine."

And it's not so bad for business, either. Coatney said Newsweek's Tumblr has 10,400 followers so far, and it drives arout 500 readers to Newsweek.com everyday. (A drop in the bucket compared to Newsweek.com's overall daily traffic, but still.) Sometime in the next few months, Coatney said, Newsweek plans to roll out a platform integration that will bring some of its Tumblr content into the Newsweek space and lead Newsweek readers back to Tumblr.

"A big media website is kind of this formal, corporate space," said Coatney, "in which interaction, if it happens at all, takes place on this really unequal arena. News sites present their stories, and then, at the most, maybe they'll let their readers respond in a lesser space. Tumblr is a level playing field, and because of that you get a much better discussion and engagement with your readers, which is vital in building a community around your publication."

Maybe The Times will use the page as a personal diary of sorts, taking the voice of oneeditor (like Newsweek's Mark Coatney). Or maybe it will become a sort of unofficial publicity page where The Times snipes back at its critics — a sort of anti-public editor blogspace. Maybe it will just be an idea shop where The Times tinkers with different ways of getting their work into the hands of people on the internet. That would probably be the most fun.